BMW x1- Beggar's Edition China

This is a discussion on BMW x1- Beggar's Edition China within The International Automotive Scene, part of the BHP Worldwide category; Stripped down version of 3 at 12-14 lakh range OTR makes sense But yes it makes sense to have a ...

Stripped down version of 3 at 12-14 lakh range OTR makes sense But yes it makes sense to have a stripped down version of these cars, but they have to be careful as to what all they strip down. One in the article seems like 8 lakh worth vehicle!

Beggar's edition or whatever. These days the largest consumers of prestige and luxe brands the world over are the Chinese,Japanese, Koreans, Brazilians, Russians and Indians. The thirst for luxe is a long way from being quenched in these countries and hence it seems reasonable that these stripped down versions will find their niche. The choice of nomenclature seems rather unfortunate though!

One Negative factor about launching basic and affordable models is that brand "exclusivity" is lost. That feel-good factor of high shoulders is lost. If a model is more affordable, it would loose premium customers to other brands. I mean a 5 series owner may not want to be on par with X1 basicowners.

This is the reason Vitara & Kizashi failed miserably. Premium segment buyers dont want to buy an "economic" brand. BMW would loose its premium if they launch stripped down models.

One Negative factor about launching basic and affordable models is that brand "exclusivity" is lost. That feel-good factor of high shoulders is lost. If a model is more affordable, it would loose premium customers to other brands. I mean a 5 series owner may not want to be on par with X1 basicowners.

This is the reason Vitara & Kizashi failed miserably. Premium segment buyers dont want to buy an "economic" brand. BMW would loose its premium if they launch stripped down models.

Yes!

This phenomenon is known as the ' commoditization of luxury' which, as luxe brands become more and more accessible to the regular boys, causes their mystique to disappear over time, and hence, reduce their overall desirability as well.

Having said that, these brands are slowly getting commoditized in developing markets and their aspiration value will migrate to different brands or specific niche or customized products within their portfolio.

It is true that no one brand can be everything to everybody because a brand should remain true to its DNA and what it stands for, while still evolving in terms of technology and innovation etc.

Cases in point: Lambo Urus, Bentley SUV etc. These are aberrations, which have been driven by a desire to cash in on market preferences and fads. Same thing which happened to Jag, when they moved away from their core of fast sports cars to try and make those exec barges. Its a different matter that they succeeded quite well, but some part of their core and what it stood for was lost!

We do have a beggar's edition train in India. The Garib rath. Atleast BMW is not teasing the mango men of china. If most of the features arent provided then is it really worth even the price they quote?